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Tag Archives: open source software development

I will began this post with something I want to make clear, but it seems people still not understand. Even this blog is about metaverse and virtual worlds sometimes speaking about other subjects would be this interesting. Specilly speaking about “OpenSource” and with a some confused meaning that some peoples say or thing about like “It is OpenSource then it is free as a beer” or “It is Opensource, it is free or gratis”. What I really think about is that this is totally WRONG , OpenSource means “Freedom” not “Free” and just let’s take a look again in wikipedia what is says about “OpenSource”:

“The term open source describes practices in production and development that promote access to the end product’s source materials. Some consider open source a philosophy, others consider it a pragmatic methodology. Before the term open source became widely adopted, developers and producers used a variety of phrases to describe the concept; open source gained hold with the rise of the Internet, and the attendant need for massive retooling of the computing source code. Opening the source code enabled a self-enhancing diversity of production models, communication paths, and interactive communities. Subsequently, the new phrase “open-source software” was born to describe the environment that the new copyright, licensing, domain, and consumer issues created.

The open-source model includes the concept of concurrent yet different agendas and differing approaches in production, in contrast with more centralized models of development such as those typically used in commercial software companies. A main principle and practice of open-source software development is peer production by bartering and collaboration, with the end-product, source-material, “blueprints,” and documentation available at no cost to the public. This is increasingly being applied in other fields of endeavor, such as biotechnology.”

here is another concept from wikipedia:

“Free and open-source software (F/OSS, FOSS) or free/libre/open-source software (FLOSS) is software that is liberally licensed to grant users the right to use, study, change, and improve its design through the availability of its source code. This approach has gained both momentum and acceptance as the potential benefits have been increasingly recognized by both individuals and corporations.

In the context of free and open-source software, free refers to the freedom to copy and re-use the software, rather than to the price of the software. The Free Software Foundation, an organization that advocates the free software model, suggests that, to understand the concept, one should “think of free as in free speech, not as in free beer”

OpenSource software are programs that can be used “without restrictive licenses”. I doesn’t means that the program cannot be copied or share, yes it can be just because the license allow to do that, but also when the developer ask for some donation or some fund to keep alive their program or their project that’s totally legal. Some of the opensource software developer would ask for some fundraising and donation (even some powerfull companies or corporation support them in their development), and there are some successful histories about how this work but well, other developers prefer to choose another method after if this doesn’t work and even I always respect with is right for them.

Finally, don’t be surprised or strange when some opensource developers ask for some fund or for some donation, it is fine and they have the right to do it. Why ? because like any other developer they just spent time and work creating great programs and sometimes they work are so valuable than any software developer.